Early Equation Program, Term Paper Example

Introduction

The below detailed early education program is aimed at pre-school age children in urban areas. The main aim of the program is to improve children’s emotional/social skills at an early age, through meeting with animals, watching movies about bonds created between mother and child in the wildlife, and create related artwork. The main goal of the program is to develop social sensitivity among children, reduce the risk of future aggression, and improve the children’s social sensitivity. The programs designed will help educators explain the link between actions and reactions, and make children understand how their behavior can affect others.

Program Design

Age Group:

The age group the program is attempting to target is children aged 2-4. At this stage of development, children are learning how to use symbolic thinking, and develop conversational skills (Piaget, 1962). They learn how to imitate behaviors, and show affection to peers or relatives. They experience and learn to express emotions, however, it is hard for them to come to terms with how their actions and words affect others. They need to learn that their emotions and views (perspectives) differ from others. This age is the time when social skills and empathy are best developed, therefore, to support the pre-school children, education professionals should implement related content.

Areas of Development:

The main areas of development the program will focus on will be emotional and social skills. At this age, developing emotional intelligence would improve children’s ability to cope with the challenges of school, learning, and social interactions. A recent study by Blair et al. (2004) examined the social skills of pre-school aged children over the period of three years. The measurements of pro-social behavior were closely related to the programs introduced to encourage showing empathy, emotions, and expressing feelings. The main focus of the program will be on reviewing different scenes from the animal world and discussing emotions that are represented in the short movies. According to Evangelou et  al. (2009, p. 18), certain methods can improve children’s emotional competence, for example “encouraging children to communicate and to discuss emotions, using stories and other fictional scenarios to aid in the understanding of the emotional preparative of others”.

Key Concepts of Early Development

According to Piaget’s Cognitive Theory, children obtain knowledge based on their experiences. Therefore, the quality and focus of early play and programs, as well as the environment will have an impact on the cognitive and emotional development of children. That stated, and considering that children from the age of 2 start understanding the world through language, symbols, and mental imagery (Piaget, 1962), it is beneficial to introduce some new forms of interaction, phrases, and abstract ideas, such as emotions, feelings, and relationships. It is also important to note that at this age it is hard to explain children the impact of others’ behavior, and the idea of empathy. Therefore, the below detailed program is focusing on showing images of animals that children can relate to. Further, given that the children selected for the program will live in urban areas, they will be likely to find the images of wild animals interesting and stimulating in a way that they will engage in conversation about them with peers.

Overall Teaching Philosophy

The program’s overall teaching philosophy will be to encourage children to reflect on their surroundings, create a stimulating experience and environment, and encourage pro-social behavior. By creating interesting, colorful, and meaningful messages and educational programs, the program will encourage social interaction with peers, as well as caregivers. Further, the children will be asked to describe the animals in the short movies, and assign them with characteristics. This will encourage them to use abstract language, and symbolic thinking: something that they will need when they are enrolled to school. This stated, the program will not only improve children’s emotional and social competencies, but also help them learn emotional and social situations that they are likely to come across in their further education. Preschool teachers will group children into smaller teams for discussion, and develop supporting creative activities, such as role play with animal figurines, based on the short movies, drawing, painting, and storytelling.

Classroom Setting and Home Links

The setting of the classroom will have a great importance in the program, and educators will prepare a stimulating environment. Cushions with animal patterns or images will be placed on the floor where children will sit to watch the short movies. Further, during discussion, the seat cushions will be placed in a circle to allow children to see each other’s reaction and pay full attention to the speaker. The large group discussion of the short movies will be followed by activities in smaller groups. Children will be asked which animal they liked the most, and those who liked the same animal will be placed in the same group to create a drawing together about their experiences. This will help children understand the feelings outside of their own, and learn from others’ experiences. Accorrding to Catron & Allen (2007), the physical environment of the classroom has a great impact on learning experiences. Children need to feel safe and protected, while elements of cognitive and emotional stimulation will need to be placed in the classroom in an organized way. For dramatic play, assorted plastic animal figurines will be provided, and jungle scene carpets will act as a scene for children’s play. For art projects, clay, coloring pencils, paint, and paper will be given, and the images of various animals featured in the short movies will be stuck on the wall near the art corner. As – according to Piaget – children learn through play and their experiences during this age, emphasis should be placed on engaging play and creativity.

Letters will be sent to parents to let them know about the activity introduced in the classroom, and a list of simple, safe activities will be provided to try at home. This will help parents get involved in their children’s development and understand how the preschooler’s emotions and social skills can be stimulated.

Environment of the Program and Facilities

The program will be provided as a part of early education within a pre-school building. The main play and community area will be set up after lunch to watch the movies. The walls of the room will be decorated with animal pictures, and coloring pages that children can take and complete at their own pace. While children will be encouraged to color the pages, this will not be compulsory, so they can develop the ability to initiate actions. The activities following the movies will be led and coordinated by the pre-school teacher, who will ask questions after watching the scenes, and encourage discussion. Music will also be provided, related to the animals seen in the movie.

Conclusion

Overall, the above program will fulfill several goals: encourage peer interaction and relationship. Stimulate emotional and social skills development, and promote creativity / taking initiatives among children aged 2-4.

References

Blair, K. A., Denham, S. A., Kochanoff, A., & Whipple, B., (2004). Playing it cool: Temperament, emotion regulation, and social behaviour in preschoolers. Journal of Social Psychology, 42, 419-443.

Catron, C. E., & Allen, J. (2007). Early childhood curriculum: A creative play model. Prentice Hall.

Evangelou, M. (2009). Early years learning and development: literature review. Retrieved from http://www.foundationyears.org.uk/files/2012/08/DCSF-RR1761.pdf

Piaget, J. (1962). Play, dreams and imagination in childhood. Play theory, 89-187.